Hieam steait



(No Model.) 4

H. STRAIT.

GORKSGRBW."

Patented ay' 5, 1885.

j #zr/Saw@ INVIA/fol;

Attorneys ilNrTnD -STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HIRAM STRAIT, OF TROY, NEV YORK.

CO RKSC REW.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 317,038, dated May 5, 1885.

Application filed December 9, 1584. (No model.)

To @ZZ whom it may concern,.-

Be it known that I, HIRAM STRAIT, a citizen of the United States, lresiding at rIroy, in the county of Rensselaer and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Corkscrews, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to corkscrews; and it has for its object to provide a device of this character by means of which the cork may be withdrawn from the bottle without being injured, so as to be capable of future use.

In the general class of corkscrews now on the market the screw works throughthe body of the cork, causing it to split, and rendering it wholly unfit for use again. Moreover, by this splitting action, particles of the cork sometimes escape down into the bottle, to the detriment of its contents. For the purpose of obviating these serious defects, I have devised a corkscrew which will act to withdraw the cork without splitting or otherwise injuring the same in any manner, and furthermore, to enable this withdrawal of the cork to be performed with ease, rapidity, and expeditiously. With these ends in view, the said invention consists in the improved construction, arrangement, and combination of parts, as will be hereinafter set forth, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure lis a perspective view of a corkscrew embodying my improvements, showing it in position Y perspective View of a modied form. Fig. at

is a transverse section on the line as sa, Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a detail view of an improved form of arm for the corkscrew. Figs. 6 and 7 illustrate views of modications.

Like letters are used to indicate correspond ing parts in the several figures.

Referring to the drawings, A designates the U -shaped body or frame of my improved corkscrew, attached to or formed with a short stem or shank, B, to which is secured the usual handle,'O. Rods or bars E extend across the space inclosed by the frame A, and are mounted at their ends in the sides thereof.

F F designate the blades or arms of the frame.

corkscrew, formed rectangular at their upper ends and sliding laterally on the rods or bars E between the sides of the frame A, the re- 55 maining portion of the blades or arms being reduced in width and tapering downward to a point. The inner face of the reduced portion is hollowed out or concaved to tit the cork, (see Fig. 4,) and is threaded or serrated to 6c catch in the same, the outer face being rounded or convex, to conform to the surface ofthe neck. G designates a wire rod passing through the upper-ends of the arms F, between the bars F,

and tted at its ends in the sides of frame A, 6 5

small coiled-springs H H encircling the rod and bearing against the blades or arms and frame, respectively. By this means the arms 'are retained equidistant from each other, but

may be moved laterally, inward or outward, 7o to accommodate the corkscrew to the size of l the cork to be extracted.

The operation of my invention will be readily understood from the foregoing description, taken in connection with the annexed draw- 75 ings. The lower ends of the blades or arms F are pressed down around the cork and between it and the neck of the bottle,` and then, by turning the handle, the arms are worked farther downward to cause the threads or serrations 8o to bite or engage with the cork. By this action the latter is compressed so as to allow the free withdrawal of the cork with the blades or arms of the corkscrew by drawing the latter out in the usual and well-known manner. The 8 5 cork isrretained between the blades by the pressure of the springs on each side, but can be withdrawn from the blades by moving one of them slightly to one side.

In Fig. 3 I modify the construction shown 9o inthe remaining figures, and simplify it in many respects.

In Figs. 1 and 2 the rods orbars E are round in cross-section and pass through correspondingly-shaped openings in the blades or arms 95 F, one end of the rods being headed and fitting around one of the sides of frame A, and the other end being threaded to receive a unt which binds against the opposite sidel of said Y roo In the construction shown in Fig'. 3 I em-` ploy only one bar E, which is square in crosssection, and has its ends received by the sides of the frame and held securely by screws or other fastening means. In place of two springs H, I use only one long spring, and arrange it between the upper ends of the arms F, and bearing against the same so as to force them outward. rIhus, instead of adjusting the arms or blades outward against the pressure of the two springs, the said arms are forced inward for the same purpose. I have shown the lower end of the arms F as threaded either right or left; but in Fig. 5 the inner faces of the arms are threaded both right and left, the threads meeting together or joining at the center, and thus the corkscrew may be turned in either direction to withdraw the cork; but in the other figures the device canv be turned only to the right or left,accordingly as it is threaded. By hollowing out the inner face and rounding the outer face of the blades or arms, a cup shape is given, which will be of special advantage to iit the cork and provide a rm bea-ring in extracting it from the neck of the bottle. The arms or blades are kept equidistant from each other and to the center of rotation of the device, and may be adjusted to suit or accommodate themselves to the various sizes of corks by pressing them inward or outward accordingly as the springs are within or outside of the blades. The springs are not absolutely necessary, but are convenient in practice, for thereby the parallelism of the blades is positive. The blades, whatever be the shape, should be smooth on the outer side next to the bottle and threaded on the inner side adjacent to the cork.

In the construction shown in Fig. 3, the

y cork,when withdrawn, is released by the arms or blades springing outward under the action of the spring H, but in the other arrangement the cork is held by the arms, as hereinbefore stated. Since the arms or blades, when introduced between the cork and its surroundings, simply compress the cork, the threads need not be deep in order to draw it, for there is no such drawing action as in the ordinary corkscrew. Vhen the device has been properly worked down around the cork it requires but a moment to withd raw the whole thing, for no strength is required.

My improved corkscrew is simple, ineX- pensive, and durable in construction, and efficient in operation, and can be readily operated without requiring any skill to manipulate it. The corks are withdrawn in nearly as good condition as when introduced, and since the blades or arms do not work through the center of the cork but around it, there is no splitting, with the consequent disadvantages previously pointed out. By this means there will be a great saving of corks, and this feature is the main point on which Ilay claim.

lThe corkscrew is of such a construction as not to work out of. order or become broken, the parts being securely tted together and made of the best materials for the work to be done.

I would have it understood that I reserve the right to vary the construction and modify the arrangement of the parts without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention.

As seen in Fig. 6, I dispense with the U- shaped or forked body, and make it T-shaped in form.

A is the horizontal body proper. B is the stem, and C the handle. The blades or arms F slide laterally on the body A, (which serves the purpose of the bars EQ and are held there- 4on by means of buttons, screws, or equivalent means. These buttons or binding-screws may be arranged, as seen in the drawings, to bind the blades at various points on the body A, or they may be disposed at the ends ofthe body and operated to push or slide the blades or arms along the length thereof. The latter arrangement is shown in the detached sectional view Fig. 7, which differs from the preceding figure simply in the construction of the adj usting-screw.

Having described my invention, I claim- 1. In a corkscrew, the combination, with a suitable body, of laterally-movable blades independent of each other, and having one side smooth and the other side threaded or serrated, as and for the purpose set forth.

2. In a corkscrew, the combination, with a suitable body,of laterally-movable blades having their inner faces hollowed out or concaved and the outer face rounded or convex, as and for the purpose set forth.

3. In a corkscrew, the combination, with a frame or body having connecting rods orbars,

of blades or arms sliding laterally on said rods or bars, as set forth.

4. In a corkscrew, the combination, with a frame or body having connecting rods or bars, of blades or arms sliding laterally on the same and springs bearing against the blades, as set forth.

5. In a corkscrew, the combination, with a forked or U-shaped frame or body having a suitable handle, and rods or b ars connecting the body, of blades or arms sliding laterally on the bars or arms,a wire rod passing through the blades or ar1ns,and aspring or springs encircling the rod and bearing against the blades, as set forth.

6. In a corkscrew, the combination, with a suitable body, of laterally-sliding blades or arms having their inner faces threaded, as and for the purpose set forth.

7. In a corkscrew, the combination, with a suitable body, of blades or arms sliding laterally on the body and arranged to be held at any suitable point, so as to accommodate various sizes of corks, as set forth.

In testimony thatI claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixed my signature in presence of two witnesses.

HIRAM STRAIT.

Witnesses:

EDWARD P. LAWTON, C. H. TYLER.

IOO

IIO 

